The Moon

For transforming trepidation into wonder

Every 24 hours and 50 minutes, the Moon returns to the same relative position in the sky from our viewpoint here on earth. This motion causes the daily tides, as 1.335 sextillion kilograms of water rise and fall in a slow ebb and flow.

If you could hear that low, 18 octaves below human speech, you would make out a tone 25 cents above F#. The fact that this pulsation has a note at all follows from the principle that when you take a frequency and double or halve it, you get the same note. A sound with a new pitch but the same note quality; the same note-iness. In this case, F# + 25 cents. This is one of the mysteries of consciousness and psychoacoustics.

I’ll put it another way. Imagine you had a hypothetical instrument that could play any frequency. You enter in the tidal frequency and keep hitting “double” until you can hear something. The sound you first perceive will be a low buzz just above F#. Keep doubling, and the sound will stop by every F# on the piano keyboard, until it eventually rises above human hearing, ascending into the realm of bats.

The purpose of this piece is to lead the listener into a magical territory rooted in the natural rhythms of the Moon and the tides. I have divided it into 3 parts (New, Waxing and Full) to honour the tripartite nature of the Moon, and the Moirai that spin, measure and cut the thread of life.

It begins with a drone soundscape to anchor in the tidal frequency and esablish a sense of home. Then home is left behind and unfamiliarity pours in. We descend through all 12 keys, shedding sharps and adding flats until we reach F#’s mirror twin, Gb. Pianos are reimagined, distorted by specialist tuning software to undo the constraints that equal temperament place upon us.

And above it all, the acclaimed soprano Victoria Oruwari’s voice soars, transcending everything.

Credits

Written by Incorruptible Bodies
Produced and mixed by Annie Rew Shaw
Recorded by James Stewart and Annie Rew Shaw
Recorded at big jelly studios
Featuring Victoria Oruwari